Each objective is designed to guide your learning, align with the course content, and support real-world application—ensuring that what you learn is relevant, measurable, and meaningful in your future academic, professional, and community experiences.
- Define ageism and describe how cultural messages, media, and personal experiences influence its development across childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and later life.
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Describe how recent gains in human life expectancy set the stage both for long, productive, meaningful lives as well as negative stereotypes of growing older.
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Explain how words and labels (such as “old” or “elderly”) activate and reinforce stereotypes and shape both social views and individuals’ self-perceptions about aging.
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Identify and critique examples of ageist language and stereotypes in everyday interactions and media representations—such as the absence of older characters or one-dimensional portrayals—and practice reframing them using respectful, inclusive alternatives.
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Analyze how attitudes about aging affect people’s health and well-being, and the way society treats older people.
- Understand that there are many ways ‘aging’ is defined, depending on the context and what aspects of a person or group are being considered.
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Identify factors that lead to increasing differences in people’s opportunities and outcomes as we age.
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Recognize that aging is not a disease, disability, or illness, rather aging is a normal series of changes to which we adapt throughout life.
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Describe the recent changes in life expectancy in the U.S. (and beyond) that have contributed to population aging.
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Explain normal age-related changes to the body, and differentiate normal changes from those associated with disease or injury.
- Describe vocal qualities that impact the meaning of what a person says.
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Explain which communication styles are unhealthy or disrespectful, particularly when communicating with or about older people.
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Define “person-centered” as it relates to communicating with and about older people.
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Distinguish acceptable group labels from those that may reinforce stereotypes about aging.
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Use communication strategies that prevent common mistakes and foster meaningful dialog with people of all ages.
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Apply ageism awareness strategies in personal and professional interactions to communicate more appropriately with and about older people.
- Recognize the stages we go through as we change the way we talk about older people and about aging.
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Describe professional pathways in the field of aging, including both non-clinical and clinical opportunities.
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Use ageism-free language and communication styles in personal and professional interactions.